Apparatus for heating and vaporizing liquid



June 25, 1946. w. MfBu'TLER 2,402,871

APPARATUS FOR HEATING AIiD VAPOR-IZING- LI QUID Filed Nov. 24. 1942 A 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' i l I /4 Inventor I EMgg June 25, 1946. w. M. BUTLER APPARATUS FOR HEATING AND VAPORIZING LIQUID 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed. Nov. 24, 1942 Idler WW Z9 Patented June 25, 1946 APPARATUS FOR HEATING AND VAPORIZING LIQUID William Madison Butler, Clarksdale, Miss, as-

signor of one-third to William Atley Jenkins,

Clarksdale, Miss.

Application November 24, 1942, Serial No. 466,814

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to new and useful improvements in gas heating and vaporizing devices designed primarily for domestic use and has for its primary object to utilize a gas water heater by means of which the water heated by the gas burner may be utilized for heating and vaporizing the gas to facilitate the burning thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this character of simple and practical construction, which'is efficient and eco nomical in use, relatively inexpensive to manufacture and install in operative position and otherwise well adapted for the purposes for which the same is intended.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, throughout and in which Figure 1 is a side elevational View of the hot water boiler to which the gas heating and vaporizing attachment is connected.

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view through the boiler, taken substantially on a line 33 of Figure 2.

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein for the purpose of illustration I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention, the numeral 5 designates a tank having a partition 6 therein adjacent its lower portion to form a water compartment I in the upper portion of the'tank and a combustion chamber 3 in the lower portion thereof in which a gas burner 9 is positioned. A gas supply pipe I is attached to the burner and extends outwardly through the side of the boiler, the pipe including the usual air adjustment II. A pilot feed pipe I2 is also attached to the burner and extends outwardly through the side of the boiler, the pipes I0 and I2 being connected to the vapor supply pipe I3.

The vapor supply pipe I3 includes a pie section I4 which extends transversely across the top of the boiler 5, the pipe I3 being positioned at one side of the boiler and at a diametrically opposite side thereof and connected to the pipe section I4 is the vapor supplypipe I leading from the fuel tank (not shown).

Extending from the pipe section I4 is a pipe I6 extending downwardly through the top of the boiler for connection with a substantially inverted U-shaped coil I'I positioned in the water chamber I, the lower ends of the coil I'I com- I municationg with a transversely extending pipe I8 extending outwardly through opposite sidesof the boiler and also adapted for connection at either end with the fuel tank (not shown) for supplying liquid gas to the coil I1 whereby the liquid gas will become vaporized and passed from the coil into the pipe I5 and pipes I4 and I3 for feeding to the burner. Either end of pipe l8 may be used to feed liquid gas to the pipe ii, the other end of the pipe I8 being capped.

The feed pipe i3 is also provided with an extension H! which may be used to supply vaporized fuel to other appliances or gas burners.

The water chamber I is provided with a cold water feed pipe 2i and a hot water discharge pipe 20 by means of which water may be circulated in the chamber I to become heated for use in the usual manner as a domestic Water heater.

The pipe 29 may be provided with a pop valve 22 and the pipe section I4 may also be provided with a similar pop valve 23.

A check valve 24 is positioned in the supply pipe I5 in advance of the pop valve 23 and the pipe section I4 is also provided with a manually con trolled valve 25. The vapor feed pipe I3 is provided with a pressure regulator 26 and mounted in the gas feed pipes Ill and I2 is a thermostatically controlled valveZ'I from which a pipe 28 extends into the boiler. The pipes II] and I2 are provided with valves 29 and 30 respectively and the vapor pipe I6 is provided with a bleeder valve 3| of conventional construction to prevent liquid gas from entering the pipes I3 and I4 and permitting vapor to enter said pipes.

A flue 32 leads from the combustion chamber 8 outwardly through the top of thetank and the lower portion of the water chamber I is provided with a drain faucet 33. The invention is designed for use with butane gas which is stored in underground tanks wherein the liquefied gas is vaporized and fed to gas appliances in the house and for other purposes. Butane gas has a boiling connected to a conventional underground tank containing liquefied gas, the vapor generated in the tank rising in the pipe and passes through the check valve 24, then through the pipe I4 and 2 pipe l5 and the pipe Hi to also pass into the service pipe I 3.

The bleeder valve 3| will prevent liquefied gas from entering pipe 14, but will permit the passage of the vaporized gas and the check valve 24 will prevent vaporized gas of a pressure in excess of the pressure in pipe l5 from passing from pipe l4 back into pipe 15.

The burner 9 is supplied with vaporized gas from the service pipe 13, through the thermostatically controlled valve 21, and a pilot pipe l2 for the burner is also connected to the service pipe.

:Accordingly, the gas which is naturally vaporized in the supply tank will be supplied to the service pipe l3 when the water tank or boiler 5 is cold without danger of liquefied gas entering the service pipe and when an increased supply of vaporized gas is desired the same may be generated by means of the coil l1 and burner 9.

It is believed the details of construction, advantages and manner of'use of the device will be readily understood from the foregoing without further detailed explanation,

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

l. A gas vaporizer comprising a tank having a water chamber therein, a burner beneath the chamber for heating water therein, a vapor fuel feed pipe extending upwardly at one side of the tank and having an overhead section extending across the top thereof and thence downwardly at a relative opposite side of the tank and adapted for connection to a remotely disposed gas appliance, an inverted U-shaped coil in the water chamber, and having an upwardly extending pipe connected to the overhead section of the fuel feed pipe, a fuel inlet for the coil extending horizontally in the water chamber and connected to the bottom of both ends of the U-shaped coil, a pipe connecting the downwardly extending portion of the fuel feed pipe to the burner, and a check valve in the vapor feed pipe adjacent its junction with the'overhead section thereof, the pressure of vapor entering the overhead pipe from the vapor fuel feed pipe operating to obstruct admission of liquid into said overhead pipe from the coil when pressure of vapor generated in the coil is less than pressure of vapor in the vapor fuel feed pipe.

2. A gas vaporizer comprising a tank having a water chamber therein, a burner beneath the chamber for heating water therein, a vapor fuel feed pipe .extending upwardly from a source of vapor supply at one side of the tank and having an overhead section extending across the top thereof and thence downwardly at a relative opposite side of the tank and adapted for connection to a remotely disposed gas appliance, a coil in the water chamber and having an upwardly extending pipe connected to the overhead section of the fuel feed pipe, a liquid gas inlet for the coil at the bottom thereof and adapted to feed vaporized gas to the overhead section of the vapor feed pipe for mixing with the vapor therein, a pipe connecting the downwardly extending portion of the vapor feed pipe to the burner to supply vaporized fuel thereto, a thermostatically controlled valve in said last-named pipe and a check valve in the vapor feed pipe adjacent its junction with the overhead section thereof, the pressure of vapor entering the overhead pipe from the vapor fuel feed pipe operating to obstruct admission of liquid into said overhead pipe from the coil when pressure of vapor generated in the coil is less than pressure of vapor in the vapor fuel feed pipe.

3. A gas vaporizer comprising a tank having a water chamber therein, a burner beneath the chamber for heating water therein, a coil in the chamber and having a pipe rising therefrom, a service pipe adapted to supply vaporized fuel to one or more burners from a source of vapor supply, a branch pipe connecting the service pipe with the first mentioned burner, said first named pipe being connected to the service pipe in advance of the burners, a pipe connecting the coil with a supply of liquid gas for vaporizing in-the coil and feeding vaporized gas to the service pipe, a thermostatically controlled valve in the branch pipe for the first named burner, and a check valve in the service pipe between the source of supply and the coil and adapted to close when pressure in the coil is greater than pressure from the source of vapor supply.

4. A gas vaporizer comprising a tank having a water chamber therein, a burner beneath the chamber for heating water therein, a coil in the chamber and having a pipe rising therefrom, a service pipe adapted to supply vaporized fuel to one or more burners from a source of vapor supply, a branch pipe connecting the service pipe with the first-mentioned burner, said first-named pipe being connected to the service pipe in advance of the burners, a pipe connecting the coil with a supply of liquid gas for vaporizing in the coil and feeding vaporized gas in the service pipe, a bleeder valve in said first-named pipe, said bleeder valve being normally closed to exclude passage of liquid from the coil into the service pipe and responsive to predetermined vapor pressure generated in the coil to open said bleeder valve to feed vaporized gas from the coil to the service pipe, a thermostatically controlled valve in the branch pipe for the first-named burner, and a check valve in the service pipe between the source of supply and the coil'and'adapted to close when pressure in the coil is greater than pressure from the source of vapor supply. i 7

WILLIAM MADISON BUTLER. 

